by Caroline Domecq
LSU Sports Information
Jimmy Wiggins has proven he has what it takes to go the distance, adding talent and dedication to become the leader of the LSU cross country team.
There is no doubt the senior has talent, but according to distance coach Mark Elliott, it is Wiggins’ perseverance through the years that has led to his success.
“He came in as a good kid and a good student,” Elliott said, “but it could have gone either way for Jimmy. He probably would have made our team either way, but he could have been our eighth guy – just somewhat contributing – instead of our first guy and a major contributor.
“But I think he made a decision after his sophomore year to be the best he could possibly be. He made that decision, and he’s reaping the benefits now.”
These benefits have come for Wiggins in the form of his recent marks. He placed in the top 20 in three of the Tigers’ four cross country meets this season, including two top-10 finishes. He won the LSU Invitational with a season-best 8K time of 25:31.55, a performance that also earned him Southeastern Conference Men’s Cross Country Athlete of the Week honors Sept. 27.
Wiggins also showed his abilities this past track season with several notable accomplishments. He posted the sixth-best 10,000-meter time in school history (30:14.80) and ran the ninth-best 5,000-meter time in school history (14:14.90).
While coming this far has taken a lot of dedication, Wiggins said being able to compete like he does and seeing the positive results are worth the effort.
“Everybody says with athletics you give up so much, but I’ve met so many people through it and gone so many places because of it,” Wiggins commented. “The past two years especially, I’ve been putting a lot of effort in – getting the right amount of sleep, doing whatever I’m supposed to do – and it has paid off.”
Distance running was nothing new to Wiggins when he came to LSU. He was a four-time letterwinner on the cross country and track teams at St. Paul’s High School in Covington, La., helping the Wolves to three cross country state titles. Individually, in his junior and senior seasons Wiggins took home the state championship in the 1,500 meters.
According to Wiggins, attending a high school that emphasized track and cross country so much helped motivate him to develop his running skills.
“Running is something I’ve been doing for a while,” Wiggins explained. “It didn’t exactly just come naturally. I played soccer when I was little, but I went to a high school where track and running were the things to do. So I did that and it just went from there.”
Two of the personal bests he brought to LSU from St. Paul’s were a 4:06.01 finish in the 1,500 meters and a 15:44 mark at a 5K cross country course. He has since broken both of those.
Another area where he always brings out his best is in his academics. An engineering major, Wiggins has been named to the SEC Academic Honor Roll twice since arriving at LSU. And that, as pointed out by Elliott, makes his athletic successes all the more impressive and says a lot about the program at LSU.
“Jimmy is a model student-athlete,” Elliott said. “He’s a great student – he ‘s an engineering major with a very high GPA – and he’s our best guy on the team when it comes to distance running.
“When you talk about student-athletes, sometimes you have some who come in as No. 1 in the country out of high school and everything is expected of them. Jimmy came in as just a normal kid coming to college. He worked hard to be the best guy we have. I think that says a lot about him and our program, that you can have a kid come in not well known outside the state and act as a major contributor.”
It may seem that having to be such a key contributor to the team would put a lot of pressure on Wiggins, but he claims it is quite the opposite.
“I guess I’m considered the top distance runner,” he said, “but we also have two other runners – Sam (Mwape) and Pat (Gavin) – who are right up there with me. So if I have a bad day, it’s not like they can’t pick up the slack. It’s not like last year when I was the top and that was it. So I don’t find too much added pressure to it. Actually, it’s fine, because if I get beat by them it means they are doing better than me, making the team that much better.”
Team improvement is something Wiggins has always strove for, and this year it has paid off. In four meets this year, the team finished in the top four in all of them, including a first-place finish in the LSU Invitational. The next test will be in the SEC Championships beginning Oct. 30.
This will be Wiggins’ last season on the cross country team, but he said he does not let that emotion affect him while competing.
“I definitely am thinking deep down that this is my last year when I run,” he explained, “but the approach I had last year worked for me, and I want to come out with the same mentality. I don’t want to change it too much and add too much pressure on myself.”
Whatever he is doing, it has been working for him.
Wiggins has accomplished a lot in his career at LSU and said he does not regret any of his decisions to make running a major part of his life.
“Being able to run for LSU has been awesome,” he said. “It has been a great experience and I wouldn’t change anything for the world.”